Sport footwear is known, such as ski boots, snowboard boots, trekking boots or other similar sport footwear, which can be provided with an upper part, or cuff, and a lower part, or shell.
These known boots can assume a first clamped position, or position of use, to clamp the ankle and shin zone during sporting activity, and a second, released or loosened position to facilitate the user in putting on and removing the boot, and in walking.
The shell includes a front tongue, to cover a front opening near the shin zone of the user's leg, which is generally bent and/or moved forward to facilitate the removal/insertion of the foot from/into the boot.
Sport boots are also known in which the opening is defined by distancing and separating lateral portions of the shell which normally overlap in correspondence with the shin zone.
Associated with the front part of the sport boot there are normally one or more closing mechanisms which allow to selectively regulate the intensity of closure of the main structure of the boot, to clamp the latter with respect to the foot and the shin zone of the user's leg.
Known sport boots are also generally provided with other closing mechanisms attached to the shell and/or the upper cuff, which selectively allow to clamp the ski boot in the upper part thereof, for use during sporting activity, or to release it so that it can be put on or removed.
To this purpose different types of closing mechanisms are known, which can include, for example, an attachment member with teeth, with which a closing lever engages, or a screw-type regulator, both configured to tighten the front part of the sport boot by bringing together two opposite sides of the lateral portions. The closing or tightening force can be regulated and selected by the user according to his/her own requirements.
A subsequent opening of the closing mechanisms allows to loosen the sport boot, so as to allow the user to remove it at the end of his/her sporting activity, or to facilitate walking during a pause in the activity.
Known closing mechanisms have the disadvantage, however, that they normally consist of complex and bulky mechanisms that entail an increased complexity in maneuvering for the user.
Among the types of closing mechanisms with which a sport boot is provided there is also a Velcro® strip, typically positioned in the upper part of the front or shin zone of the sport boot, and attached in the external part of the upper cuff.
To clamp the sport boot it is provided to insert the Velcro® strip inside an eyelet on a lateral part of the upper cuff.
The Velcro® strip is then returned toward the opposite side of the upper cuff and adjusted according to the user's requirements.
One disadvantage of known sport boots is that it is very inconvenient to adjust the closing mechanisms, especially the type with teeth attachment, which are very difficult to adjust with respect to the Velcro® strip.
During pauses or rest-stops in the sporting activity, or for example during an ascent or while walking, it is possible to open the closing mechanisms in the upper part of the sport boot, that is, the Velcro® strip and the first closing clip, to allow better use of the sport boot while walking.
Another disadvantage is that, when the user again needs to clamp the sport boot after the pause or rest-stop, he/she will not always be able to obtain the same adjustment as desired and set at the start of the day.
Moreover, the operation to clamp a known sport boot can occupy the user for a long time because, during use, the user will be wearing gloves, which limit the mobility of the user's hands.
Furthermore, during the operation to clamp a sport boot during use, the user is generally precariously balanced, for example on the snow, on a slippery and/or icy surface, often on a slope, which conditions are potentially dangerous.
Another obstacle to manipulating known closing mechanisms is that generally they are positioned under the user's trouser-legs, and he/she is therefore obstructed in driving the levers of the mechanisms.
German Patent 69301215 describes a ski boot that provides a shell, a upper cuff articulated on the shell and an inner boot. The upper cuff is in turn formed by two parts that are articulated with respect to each other, a front part and a rear part, which are reciprocally brought together and kept clamped by a closing system of levers. Moreover, a strip system is provided to tighten the inner boot.
Swiss patent application publication CH 688,606 A also describes a clamping device for a ski boot, including a shell and a upper cuff consisting of a front part and a rear part clamped to each other by a closing system of levers.
Swiss patent application publication CH 471 553 A describes another ski boot of a known type, provided with a single closing system with a connection clip.
European patent application publication EP 2 591 696 A describes another ski boot of a known type, provided with a single closing system including a connection cable.
There is therefore a need to perfect sport footwear, such as a ski boot or other similar footwear, that can overcome at least one of the disadvantages of the state of the art.